Isaiah 9:6

His Name will be called Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

With the Christmas season upon us, we need to reflect upon the birth of our Savior. How can a child born in a manger express the nature of God’s rule? In this baby we can see the personal, reconciling work of God the Father. That which is everlasting has stepped into time and history. That which is beyond humanity has personally proclaimed the love of the Father for the whole world. The peace which eludes the grasp of warring empires can now be established by the presence of this Prince. This little baby proclaims in His very person the plan and purpose of a missionary God.

Thank the Father for bringing peace to our own hearts and relationships. Pray that He will honor His Name as we in turn serve as ministers of reconciliation among the nations.

Missionary Biography, Charles and Pearl Marsh

by AL

Pearl Lamb was born in 1903 of missionary parents in Algiers and spent her childhood at Tabarouth, an isolated village in the mountains of Algeria. To get there, they first took an old-fashioned steam train, then a stage coach, and finally a five-hour journey on mule back, or by donkey! Since her parents were busy preaching and teaching, Pearl was often lonely. Once a week she would spend the day with two Swiss ladies, and from them she learned French. She also spoke Kabyle, the language of the Berbers among whom they lived.

Though early in life she had surrendered her life to the Lord, by the age of 17, Pearl was so thoroughly bored with life in Tabarouth that she vowed never to become a missionary in a Muslim land. Back in England she studied nursing at the Mildmay Memorial Hospital. It was an arduous course with exhausting 12-hour days. Her hands were often covered with sores from manually washing infected dressings so that they could be sterilized and used again.

Life was not all toil, however. During this period she became acquainted with Charles Marsh, a young man who had received his call to Muslim work through Pearl’s father, H. G. Lamb. They were finally married in Algiers in 1927. After a one-day honeymoon, they set out to visit the villages before the heat of summer set in.